Restaurants, patrons gearing up for Dine Out

Staten Island Advance photos/Irving SilversteinSt. Joseph Hill Academy students Sara Farley, Melanie Wohr and Nicolette Vasile were at Borough Hall for the Dine Out Against Hunger kickoff.STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Eating for the hungry: This simple equation drives "Dine Out Against Hunger" -- an annual event that has come to define the generosity and compassion of Staten Islanders, by bringing people out to local restaurants that in turn donate to charity.

Each restaurant will donate 20 percent of proceeds for the day to Project Hospitality, to bolster the not-for-profit organization's food pantries and soup kitchens.

"This is the opportunity to be grateful that we have food on our table, no matter what table that restaurant is in," said the Rev. Terry Troia, executive director of Project Hospitality, to several dozen volunteers and organizers gathered at Borough Hall for a kickoff reception. "People are making tough choices to put food on the table for their children, or a roof over their heads."

Co-Chairs of Dine Out Against Hunger are Frank Lombardi of Catering by Framboise, and Claire Regan, associate managing editor of the Advance, which co-sponsors the event.This year, with the pressures of the recession, the organization already has served some 600,000 meals and it is likely by the end of 2010, that number will be will double to 1.2 million -- the highest ever.

"We have seen people who never in their life considered going to a food pantry, now going to food pantries to survive. That's the reality of the economy," said state Sen. Diane Savino (D-Staten Island/Brooklyn). "Events like Dine Out are critically important. Thank you, Staten Island, for always reaching into your pockets, more and more, even when it's harder to do."

Claire Regan, associate managing editor of the Advance, which co-sponsors the event, noted that in 1999, when Dine Out launched, $22,854 went to fund programs for hungry Staten Islanders. Last year, that amount more than tripled, to $75,269, and Staten Islanders have come to appreciate the tradition.

"Staten Islanders do respond," she said. "They come together and come out and show their generosity."

This year, in addition to sitting down to a good meal and savoring the act of charity, diners will get an extra thank-you: They will have a chance to win free lunches or dinners for two for a year, said Frank Lombardi, of Catering by Framboise, who co-chairs the event with Ms. Regan.

On each table will be free raffle tickets and envelopes. Diners need only supply the information and drop them in the mail to be eligible to win the 52 meals. There is no cost, as participating restaurants already have volunteered the gift certificates.

"The server whose table wins the raffle also gets $250," said Lombardi.

"Dine Out is an event where everyone wins," said Melanie Wohr, a senior at St. Joseph Hill Academy, where the students are among the army of volunteers who make the event possible. "Although everybody benefits from Dine Out, the food pantries are the big winners."

And borough restaurants are the primary contributors.

"Many people need and there is too much hunger," said Metin Calisir of Seaside Turkish Mediterranean Restaurant in South Beach, one of many dining establishments here stepping up to help the hungry.

For a list of participating restaurants, consult silive.com/advance/dineout. Participating restaurants also will have balloon bouquets outside their doors on Thursday.